Light Day 6: Psalm 119:105-112

Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. 
I have sworn, and I will perform it, that I will keep thy righteous judgments.
I am afflicted very much: quicken me, O LORD, according unto thy word.
Accept, I beseech thee, the freewill offerings of my mouth, O LORD, and teach me thy judgments.
My soul is continually in my hand: yet do I not forget thy law.
The wicked have laid a snare for me: yet I erred not from thy precepts.
Thy testimonies have I taken as an heritage for ever: for they are the rejoicing of my heart.
I have inclined mine heart to perform thy statutes alway, even unto the end.

Today we approach the specifics of the daily process of abiding in the Light. Certainly Jesus Christ is the Light that dwells in us – but what does that look like in our daily experience?

Psalm 119 is filled with the answer – stated specifically here in verse 105: “Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”

A familiar verse – but what does it mean, and how does it shed light on how we walk in the light in our lives?

Abiding in the light means remaining in the Word. Even a single thoughtful read-through of Psalm 119 should quickly confirm that it isn’t just enough to read the Bible, study the Bible, or even memorize the Bible – though all of these are certainly necessary and immensely beneficial to our walk with God. Yet if we are truly to receive His light into our daily lives, His Word must be more than simply an item on our to-do list or an activity on our morning or evening routine. Even if we approach the Word with true passion, fervor, and love for God, we fall short of His potential for us of walking in the light if this is our only interaction with the Word.

While morning quiet time may consist of a half hour or an hour of soaking up Scripture (assuming your thoughts are focused), the problem occurs when you close your Bible and go about your day. For the next twenty-three hours, until your next devotion hour, your mind, heart, and thoughts are continually bombarded with the world, the flesh, and the devil – lies and fleshly thinking that seek to tear down and replace the truth of the Word that you filled yourself with. What we take in through our senses is what we think about. What we think about is what we become. Before we realize it, even if we are careful, the impact of the darkness of worldly thinking quickly overtakes the light of the Word.

Test this in your own life. How many Scriptural truths do you find difficult to believe, even though you know intellectually that they are true? Do you truly believe that with God, all things are possible? Do you truly believe that by faith all things are possible to you? Or do actually believe “all things except (fill in the blank)”? Do you truly believe that your sins are entirely gone by the cross and that now you have been made the righteousness of God in Him? Do you believe that sin has no more dominion over you? If you have trouble believing some of God’s statements in Scripture, it is because we have been so steeped in a natural mindset to the exclusion of the mindset of the kingdom of God. Yet the natural mindset is darkness to those who walk in it.

How then do we conquer this cycle? It is by allowing His Word to be a continual lamp to our feet and a light to our path. Notice the emphasis on continually abiding in God’s Word simply in the rest of this passage: “I will keep thy righteous judgments…teach me thy judgments…yet do I not forget thy law…Thy testimonies have I taken as an heritage for ever: for they are the rejoicing of my heart. I have inclined mine heart to perform thy statutes alway, even unto the end.” Jesus confirmed that, “If ye continue in my word, THEN are you my disciples indeed, and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:31-32).

A disciple certainly abides in the light rather than in the darkness of fleshly thinking – and a disciple is defined by Jesus as one who continues in His word. A disciple is one who is continually allowing God’s word to be a light to his feet. Just a few verses previous to this one, Psalm 119:97 exclaims, “O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day.” By purposefully making His word our meditation every moment of the day, we ensure that the darkness of the world’s philosophies and fleshly thinking have no power over our minds, lives, or hearts. 

God’s word isn’t just a light to begin or end our day with – it’s a step-by-step lamp. If you were going to walk through physical darkness, you wouldn’t turn on a flashlight, spend a few minutes soaking up its light, and then leave it on the shelf while you went out into the blackness. Of course not; you’d carry it with you, allowing it to illumine every step and plot a safe course for your feet. God’s word is the same way – each day, implant a verse into your mind and heart, pondering it throughout the day, muttering it to yourself, thinking about its meaning and application, praying it to God, applying it to what you encounter during the day, making it truly the joy and rejoicing of your heart. Each time you find your mind wandering to the things of the world, use that as a reminder to fix your mind back on His Word. “Be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your minds…” (Romans 12:2). This is truly living in the word – and living in the light.

What are you meditating on today?